Gairloch Pharmacy

14/11/2025

It's beginning to look a bit like Christmas in the Pharmacy!

The team has been busy this week breaking out the tinsel, lights and tree to add some festivity to our wee Pharmacy… now some of you may think that this is a bit early, but beware of saying this in the Pharmacy as there are some (not looking at anyone in particular Sarah!) who have been chomping at the bit to get the decorations up for weeks!

So if you're passing, we’d love you to pop in and check out our Chrimbo decorations and of course the new Christmas gifts that we’ve got in for this year.

Yours festively,
Ian and his little (or in Graeme’ case, not so little) helpers

10/11/2025

Flu Jab Reminder – NHS Issues Flu Season Alert

Good morning everyone,

Last week, the NHS issued a national alert for this year’s flu season, warning that it could be the most severe in the past ten years. With cases already three times higher than this time last year, the NHS is urging everyone eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

Flu can be serious, especially for older adults, young children, and people with health conditions — so if you’re eligible, please do consider getting your flu jab this year. I personally believe that it’s one of the simplest and most effective ways to protect yourself, your family, and our community.

You can read the full NHS update here:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/2025/11/nhs-issues-flu-jab-sos-with-worst-of-winter-only-weeks-away/

Flu vaccinations are available here at Gairloch Pharmacy — both NHS and private options — so if you haven’t had yours yet, please feel free to call in or phone us to arrange an appointment.

Stay well,
Ian
Gairloch Pharmacy

NHS England » NHS issues flu jab SOS with worst of winter only weeks away

06/11/2025

Is it just me, or now that daylight saving is upon us, does it feel like things are turning increasingly wintry? ❄️

This picture is stunning (the scenery — can’t vouch for the subjects!) and was taken only a few weeks ago. Hard to believe how quickly the seasons are changing! I’m sure there will be plenty more wintry photo opportunities to come as Paula and I make our way through our first winter here in this spectacular wee corner of the world.

A big thank you to everyone who came into the pharmacy for our vaccination service. We completed 61 flu and COVID vaccines last month — not bad at all considering the vaccines didn’t arrive until mid-month! We still have some vaccines available, so if you’re interested, please call us or drop in to arrange a time.

Speaking of last month’s activity — in October we dispensed just over 4,900 items, which equates to around one item processed through the computer, stock ordered, dispensed, clinically checked, packed up, and handed out every two minutes. That’s quite something when you consider that dispensing is only a fraction of the services we provide.
Stay warm everyone, and we look forward to seeing you in the pharmacy soon!

Yours toastily,
Ian

03/11/2025

Please Note : Review Of Delivery Service

We are currently reviewing the volunteer-ran Aultbea prescription delivery service and eligibility criteria. We will inform of any changes to the service as soon as possible.

Gairloch Pharmacy Team

30/10/2025

Things are afoot in the pharmacy this Halloween week and we are really looking forward to seeing Halloweeners young and old tomorrow…. infact Graeme and I are hoping for a great turnout to limit our sugar overdose (we have already eat half the sweeties, despite Sarah’s best efforts to hide them!).

And, if you notice some bleary eyed people in the Pharmacy over the next few months it’s likely not because of the Halloween ghosts n ghouls but due to all of the new training opportunities that the team is taking advantage of. Elsie has started the Medicines Counter Assistant course, Ellie is working through the Dispensary and Counter Assistant course while Sarah is powering through the Technicians course with accuracy checking qualification (which means that when qualified she will be able to final check prescriptions that have been clinically checked by the Pharmacist). As for Graeme…. well rumour has it that he knows all and is just content to continue providing his words of wisdom to all……

In the new year, when everyone is well underway with their training, I will be starting the Independent Prescribers course. When complete this will mean that we can provide you with even more support, which we are really looking forward to.

Yours learningfully,
Ian

23/10/2025

Hi all

Now that I've managed to get out of my ghost outfit (see last message) I thought I'd give you a quick update on the vaccine service.

All vaccines finally arrived last Friday afternoon and since then we have already done 31 vaccinations across NHS Flu and Private Flu and COVID.

The COVID vaccine is proving challenging to get stock of, so if you can let us know if you'd like a COVID vaccine then please let us know as soon as possible so that we can plan ahead.

At the moment we have a reasonable amount of Flu vaccine so feel free to just drop in to the pharmacy and we'll help you as soon as possible, or you can call ahead and book a time that suits you.

Oh, and we can also help you out with vaccines on weekends as I'll be here every Saturday morning from 9am to 1pm.

Yours spookily,
Ian

22/10/2025

HALLOWEEN is nearing 🎃 👻

Gairloch Pharmacy are ready for all you trick or treaters, we have some decorations and a pumpkin full of sweeties for anyone with a GOOD joke 😂

16/10/2025

Good morning everyone,

Now that I’ve finished my coffee break (thanks Johnny for the newbie cake!), I’d like to update you all about our vaccine service.

Thank you for the great response to my last message — the level of interest means that we’re now able to provide a private vaccination service for both flu and COVID-19, in addition to the NHS service for flu vaccinations.

As mentioned previously, the prices for the private service are:

Flu vaccination: £25

COVID-19 vaccination: £90

Both flu and COVID-19 vaccinations: £100

We now have the flu vaccines for both the NHS and private services, and are expecting the COVID-19 vaccines to be delivered tomorrow.

For those who have already contacted us, we’ll be in touch shortly to arrange a vaccination time that suits you. For anyone else who’s interested, please feel free to call us or pop into the pharmacy to find out more or book an appointment.

As a wee aside — last week we also received several enquiries about offering a year-round travel vaccination service, so we’re looking into this and will keep you updated as things progress.

Thanks again for all the support and encouragement — it’s great to see how engaged everyone is in helping us shape local pharmacy services!

07/10/2025

Hello everyone,

Thank you for your responses and interest in the pharmacy providing a flu and COVID vaccination service. We’re pleased to confirm that we intend to commence the NHS flu vaccination service on Monday 13th October.

This service will be available for anyone who has received an NHS flu vaccination invitation but is unable to attend the vaccination clinics at the Gairloch Community Hall.

For next week, we will be accepting bookings on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings. If you would like to book an appointment, you can do so either through the ‘Service Now’ National Scheduling System or by calling the pharmacy directly.

Unfortunately, at this time we are not able to provide NHS COVID vaccinations. However, we are looking to offer a private vaccination service for those who wish to receive flu and/or COVID-19 vaccines but are not eligible under the NHS programme.

The prices for the private service will be as follows:

Flu vaccination: £25

COVID-19 vaccination: £90

Both flu and COVID-19 vaccinations: £100

If we receive sufficient interest to cover the cost of the vaccines, we plan to open the private vaccination clinics from Thursday 23rd October.

Thank you again for your continued support — it’s great to see such positive engagement from the community as we work to provide convenient local services.

02/10/2025

Hello everyone,

First, a big thank you for all of your warm responses to my message last week. It has been lovely meeting so many of you already. In addition to the kind welcomes, I’ve even met locals who once lived just around the corner from me in Darlington, where I was born, and in Palmerston North in New Zealand, where we last lived and where our daughter Emma is currently finishing university. It really is a small world — I wonder what other connections there are still to discover!

On a more practical note, as a team we’ve also been looking at what further services we can provide for the community. I’m pleased to share that we have agreed with NHS Highland to offer NHS flu vaccinations as part of this year’s campaign. This will complement the existing vaccination clinics being run at the Community Centre, and will provide an alternative option for anyone eligible for an NHS flu jab who isn’t able to attend the centre’s clinics.

We are also exploring the possibility of offering private flu and COVID vaccinations for those not eligible under the NHS programme. At this stage, we’re not certain whether there will be enough demand to make this viable, so we’d be grateful if you could let us know if this is something you’d be interested in — your feedback will be a great help in our planning.

Thank you again for the kind welcome — it’s a real pleasure to be here, and I look forward to seeing you in the pharmacy

25/09/2025

Here at Gairloch Pharmacy we would like to introduce you to our newest member of our team …

Ian, your new pharmacist at Gairloch Pharmacy.

I joined the team here in July 2025 in a permanent role, and I’m delighted to now call Gairloch home. With my arrival, we’re pleased to confirm that the pharmacy will now be open every Saturday from 9am–1pm, helping us provide more consistent care for the community.

A little about me: I was born in Darlington in the North East of England and gained my pharmacy degree at the University of Bradford, followed by a postgraduate qualification in clinical pharmacy at the University of Wales and an MBA from the University of Brisbane. I’ve worked in a variety of healthcare settings in both the UK and New Zealand (where I lived for 28 years), and I’m passionate about supporting people to get the very best from their medicines.

My wife, Paula, is a Kiwi (New Zealander), and together we’re enjoying settling into Gairloch life. We both love exploring local history, hiking, other outdoor activities and indoor activities like pickleball, and we look forward to becoming part of the community here.

Our daughter Emma, recently visited us in Gairloch and loved it but is now back in New Zealand finishing university, so we’re making the most of technology to stay connected.

I’m looking forward to meeting you in the pharmacy and supporting your health and wellbeing.

17/09/2025

remember we have our 15% sale on our Batela range and we still have plenty of gorgeous stock 🥰 also any £10 spent will gain a stamp on your loyalty card 😄